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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: lean · hand · game · court · present · wake · lash · lie

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. game — a match
  3. court — of law
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. lean — thin
  6. lean — to bend
  7. hand — in cards
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. wake — a trail
  10. court — for sport
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. present — the time now
  16. hand — help
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lie — to recline
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. court — of a king
  21. present — a gift
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. game — wild animals
  24. present — there

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com